Reply by reggiek

There are several hard woods that can be used in this situation. The biggest damage to outdoor funiture comes from UV rays. Once these rays remove your protective finish….the other elements – heat/cold, damp/dry….will finish the work that the UV started.

That said, I have used walnut, maple, mahogany….etc..etc…for outside items with the caveat that I refresh the finish every 6 months to a year. I use a good penetrating oil finish as this is easier to apply and does not require re-sanding to apply (you can apply spar varnish over an old coat of spar…but the level of the finish will be unequal – this is because most UV tolerant finishes are made to flake away with contiuous UV exposure…this is so that the entire finish does not curl and peal away as non formulated interior finishes would). It is usually a very good idea to sand old coats of spar before applying a new coat.

My favorite outdoor funiture woods though are Redwood (1) – great stuff but can be expensive depending on the distance you are from California and Oregon. White Oak and Cedar (2) tied – both are awesome woods and both have their pros and cons. Mahogany (3) great outside wood – alot of wood boats are made from this and with new plantation woods – it is getting a bit cheaper to use. There are many more…but listing them would make this way to lengthy. Typically though, most hardwoods will work outdoors if you are diligent about keeping them oiled or finished…